Rhos Fach standing stone pair

Summary description and reason for designation

The following provides a general description of the Scheduled Ancient Monument.

The monument comprises a pair of standing stones, probably dating to the Bronze Age (c.2300 BC - 800 BC) and situated within enclosed and improved pasture on the lower S-facing flanks of Mynydd Preseli. The two stones are aligned from NW to SE. The larger stone measures 2m in height, 0.65m in length and 0.6m in width. Its neighbour, situated 1.9m to the NW, measures 1.5m in height, 0.5m in length and 0.4m in width.

The monument is of national importance for its potential to enhance our knowledge of prehistoric ritual practices. Such standing stones are assumed to have had some form of religious or ceremonial function - they may have formed a link to the celestial landscape that ruled the days, seasons and weather so important in the lives of their builders. What is not in doubt is that their positions within the physical landscape were deliberately chosen and these settings form an integral element of the importance of the individual monuments. For example, standing stones and stone rows may have acted as markers within the landscape, guiding the eye, the traveller or the ceremonial procession. The monument retains significant archaeological potential, with a strong probability of the presence of associated archaeological features and deposits.

The area to be scheduled comprises the remains described and an area around them within which related evidence may be expected to survive. It is circular and measures 16m in diameter.